Except for Love

Thirty-five contemporary New England poets share their poems inspired by literary giant Donald Hall (1928-2018), former Poet Laureate of New Hampshire and of the United States.

Cynthia Brackett-Vincent notes in her preface that Hall had an undying love for so many things, among them Jane Kenyon, baseball, and New Hampshire. She speaks of his amorous reverence for the past, present, and the future. As we all know, love is infectious, and Hall's poetry and persona have touched so many poets and readers alike. Through their poetry in this stunning anthology, the contributors show their love for the poet and the man.

Hall gives gravitas to the most arcane rituals of the everyday, and so do the poets here. The poems in this collection celebrate the primal, the unaffected beauty of the world. They celebrate nature, and all the poems bloom like a flower, enriched by metaphor. The poems have so much to say, and with originality. On these pages, a rose can be a totem for where you have been and where you are now. The sensibility of Hall is deeply embedded in this collection.

-Doug Holder, Founder, Ibbetson Street Press, Lecturer in Creative Writing, Endicott College